BERLIN, May 24 (Xinhua) -- Green-field investment from China created 2,600 jobs in Germany last year, a study from the Germany Trade & Invest (GTAI) showed on Thursday.
According to the German government agency, investors from China spent on 218 green-field projects in 2017, ranking No. 2, only overtaken by the United States with 276 projects.
"China has always been one of the largest sources of foreign investment for Germany, " said GTAI expert Thomas Bozeman,"Germany's big market, good environment for Research & Development and 'Made in Germany' brands belong to main reasons for Chinese firms to choose to invest in the country."
In 2016, investments from China brought record 3,900 jobs in Germany.
The GTAI said, China's investment in 2017 went first of all to the industries of business and financial service, accounting for 17 percent of the total projects. Projects in the electronics and semiconductor industry accounted for 15 percent, up 5 percentage points compared to 2016. And 14 percent of the projects went to consumer products industry.
Overall, foreign investors invested in 1910 green-field projects in Germany, creating 29,000 jobs in total. 40 percent of the investments came from the European Union.
British firms invested in 152 projects, soaring by almost 20 percent from the year before, as British businesses tried to cope with the looming effects of Brexit. This made Germany Britain's most favorite investment destination in Europe.
In addition, 1,925 foreign investments were registered in Germany because of takeovers, mergers or stake acquisitions.